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96th Tour de France

Stage 17 - Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Le Grand-Bornand - 169.0 km (105.0 mi)

22 July 2009

There has been a lot of debate lately about the Stage 14 finish in which Mark Cavendish was relegated from thirteenth to 154th after supposedly trying to put maillot vert rival Thor Hushovd into the barriers. Some assert that Cavendish boxed out Hushovd, forcing him to slow his sprint when victory would've been assured. Others cry foul on the commissaires, arguing that Cavendish had already broken toward the barriers when Hushovd, knowing he could get a favorable call from the officials, tried to slot into a too-small space. Having watched the replay over and over again, it looks most likely that the road narrows. Cavendish didn't drop his line, but we did see the barriers get closer -- as they so often do in the final meters of a stage. It's unfortunate, after Hushovd ended up winning the 2005 green jersey due to a disqualification handed down to Robbie McEwen, that he might win again based more on what happened after the stage than during it.

But this situation is different in that McEwen deserved what was handed down to him, while Cavendish is rightly peeved about the judgment. McEwen, remember, head-butted and pushed against fellow Aussie Stuart O'Grady as both were barreling toward the line. Cavendish was punished for the optical illusion created by the design of the course's final kilometer. But what few seem to focus on, no matter which side of the argument they come down upon, is that the decision to relegate the British sprinter to the end of the pack obviously yielded results for Hushovd, who ended up enjoying a fourteen-point swing in the points classification standings (218-200 instead of 217-213). 

With the Norwegian sprint star having peeled away today to claim both the intermediate sprint points ahead of the chasing field, his lead has grown to thirty points over Cavendish before we even finished Stage 17. While he is not the type of rider who can stay away to the end -- he was caught on the fourth of five climbs, the first-category Col de Romme -- and doesn't have the finishing speed of Cavendish anymore, what Hushovd does have is a more well-rounded ability to factor into a wide variety of stages. He can sneak away in the mountains to gain intermediate points, can hold his own in a breakaway, and he can still sprint in a battle royale when necessary. If Thor holds the green jersey to Paris, it shouldn't be cheapened... even considering what did happen to the Manx Missile three stages back.

And what a stage today was! The stage profile, looking as though crafted by a kindergartener who had just learned how to draw mountains, undulated ceaselessly all day long. Right from the start, the road turned upward from mile zero under overcast skies. Heading north-northwest out of Bourg-Saint-Maurice, the peloton was greeted by the slopes of the Cormet de Roseland, an 18.1-kilometer (11.2-mile) pass with an average gradient of 5.7%. On the slopes, a group of ten formed on the early pitches -- Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) was joined on his early breakaway by Jurgen Van den Broeck (Silence-Lotto), Denis Menchov (Rabobank), Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas), David Zabriskie (Garmin-Slipstream), Sandy Casar (Francaise des Jeux), Geoffroy Lequatre (Agritubel), Rigoberto Uran (Caisse d'Epargne), Remi Pauriol (Cofidis) and Ruben Perez Moreno (Euskaltel-Euskadi). With Gorka Verdugo (Euskaltel-Euskadi) and Jose Luis Arrietta (AG2R-La Mondiale) linking up, the lead group grew to a dozen. By the summit, Marzio Bruseghin (Lampre), Pierre Rolland (BBox-Bouygues Telecom) and Maxime Monfort (Columbia) also bridged the gap, and fifteen min started the descent down the day's first climb.

That group would grow even bigger on the descent, including the addition of green jersey Hushovd, to go to twenty-two riders.  The Col de Saisies, 15.1 kilometers (9.4 miles) at an average six percent grade, set the stage for the first big acceleration of the day. Hushovd, better known for his ability in the flatter stages to sniff out stage wins and high finishes, punched the pedals and rode away from the large pack of breakaway companions. With visions of gaining precious sprint points at the two intermediate sprints, Hushovd bolted free and had a 43-second lead at the summit. He would easily stay away for the first intermediate sprint, in Praz-sur-Arly, and was still ahead by over a minute after his solo breakaway over the second-category Cote d'Araches (6.3 kilometers/3.9 miles at 7%). Coming down the descent, Hushovd satisfied his goal by claiming another six points at the second of two intermediate sprints, this one in Cluses.

Hushovd would not stay away much longer, though, as the first-category Col de Romme --  its nine-percent pitches and 8.8 kilometers (5.5 miles) of climbing making a maiden appearance in the Tour de France -- rose immediately out of Cluses. Defending champion Carlos Sastre (Cervelo TestTeam) passed his green-clad teammate and tried to make a futile attempt to pull free of the pack. He took one, then another, and a third pull, trying to shake the other contenders and gain back some time in hopes of edging back closer to a podium position. But with French middleweight Thomas Voeckler (BBox-Bouygues Telecom) able to cling to his wheel, the Saxo Bank-led chasers were soon integrated.

The Schleck brothers then used the climb as a springboard to clear the dead weight. Sastre faded further and further back as the Luxembourg duo pressed the pace harder and harder up the climb. Riders shed off the back, including once again Lance Armstrong. Along with the American went Bradley Wiggins, the British cyclist who has been a surprise contender this year. The Schleck brothers would stay together with maillot jaune Contador at the front. Contador would try in vain to drop the two brothers, but only succeeded in dropping his Astana teammate Andreas Kloden. Kloden would end up over two minutes behind, passed by a recovering Armstrong and strong young rider Vincenzo Nibali.

So the general classification is all shaken up, yet again, right before tomorrow's time trial in Annecy. Contador, who has proven to be a better time-trial rider than he was back when he won his first Tour in 2007, should be able to hold on to his jersey at least until Mont Ventoux. It will be a battle behind to see who can climb behind him onto the podium. Andy and Frank Schleck have surpassed Armstrong and Wiggins for the two and three spot, with Lance and Kloden now in fourth and fifth respectively. But with the most prominent and decisive stages coming in the final week of this race, even the time trial might not decide things. Don't forget... we still have Mont Ventoux up ahead to provide one last spark of fireworks prior to Paris...

RESULTS - STAGE 17

1. Frank Schleck (Saxo Bank) 4:53:54
   
2. Alberto Contador (Astana)
3. Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank)
   
4. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas) +2:18
   
5. Lance Armstrong (Astana)
   
6. Andreas Kloden (Astana) +2:27
   
7. Bradley Wiggins (Garmin-Slipstream) +3:07
8. Christophe Moreau (Agritubel) +4:09
9. Christian Vande Velde (Garmin-Slipstream)
10. Remi Pauriol (Cofidis) +6:10

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Alberto Contador (Astana) 72:27:09
2. Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) +2:26
3. Frank Schleck (Saxo Bank) +3:25
4. Lance Armstrong (Astana +3:55
5. Andreas Kloden (Astana) +4:44
6. Bradley Wiggins (Garmin-Slipstream) +4:53
7. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas) +5:09
   
8. Christian Vande Velde (Garmin-Slipstream) +8:08
9. Christophe Le Mevel (Francaise des Jeux) +9:19
   
10. Mikel Astarloza (Euskaltel-Euskadi) +10:50
    

POINTS CLASSIFICATION

1. Thor Hushovd (Cervelo TestTeam) 230
2. Mark Cavendish (Columbia) 200
3. Jose Joaquin Rojas (Caisse d'Epargne) 126
4. Gerald Ciolek (Milram) 122
5. Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) 110
6. Nicolas Roche (AG2R-La Mondiale) 100
   
7. Oscar Freire (Rabobank) 97
8. Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas) 96
   
9. Andreas Kloden (Astana) 77
10. Lloyd Mondory (AG2R-La Mondiale) 74

KING OF THE MOUNTAINS

1. Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas) 196
2. Egoi Martinez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) 118
3. Pierrick Fedrigo (BBox-Bouygues Telecom) 97
4. Christophe Kern (Cofidis) 89
5. Mikel Astarloza (Euskaltel-Euskadi) 86
6. Alberto Contador (Astana) 85
7. Sandy Casar (Francaise des Jeux) 84
   
8. Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Silence-Lotto) 76
9. Frank Schleck (Saxo Bank) 68
10. Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) 67
    

BEST YOUNG RIDER

1. Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) 72:29:35
2. Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas) +2:43
3. Roman Kreuziger (Liquigas) +8:26
4. Brice Feillu (Agritubel) +19:24
   
5. Pierre Rolland (BBox-Bouygues Telecom) +22:41
6. Nicolas Roche (AG2R-La Mondiale) +26:12
7. Chris Anker Sorensen (Saxo Bank) +36:42
8. Peter Velits (Milram) +38:11
9. Rigoberto Uran (Caisse d'Epargne) +47:27
   
10. Tony Martin (Columbia)  +52:09

TEAM CLASSIFICATION

1. Astana -- 215:55:13
2. Garmin-Slipstream -- +16:12
3. AG2R-La Mondiale -- +16:33
4. Saxo Bank -- +24:31
5. Cofidis -- +37:17
6. Liquigas -- +38:28
7. Euskaltel-Euskadi -- +39:09
8. Francaise des Jeux -- +43:20
9. Katusha -- +53:54
   
10. Agritubel -- +1:02:52